Yesterday's cash flow report from LG coloured a bleak picture in the company's mobile business, which hasn't generated meaningful profit since with this time last year, and in many cases then it was only moderately successful. Sources familiar with LG's plans now tell The Verge the company is going on a fundamental redesign with the next flagship smartphone, your LG G5. Unlike your G3 and G4 (pictured above) which preceded it, the G5 will not be an evolution of the forebears — it will appear and feel "nothing like" those sooner Android smartphones.
LG’s Next Flagship Phone Will Stand Out With A Unique Accessory Slot
The operating-system won't be changing, of course, but LG's new flagship will have a significantly altered design, with our sources confirming it is going to feature a new accessory slot at the end, as first reported by Evan Blass over at VentureBeat. CNET Korea followed way up with some renders featuring the slot as in essence a cartridge receptacle that might make the battery user-replaceable, but we haven't had the oppertunity to confirm the specific functions of the new slot. In any case, it will be described as a focal point for LG's work to differentiate the G5.
Another change in design for LG is definitely the relocation of the volume buttons in the back of the handset aside, with the latter spot being a bit more common and familiar one for some users. A number of G5 case leaks have suggested the shifting of the volume buttons has become done, at least to some extent, to allow room for that addition of a 2nd rear-facing camera. We've not had the oppertunity to confirm that data yet, nor the reported "all-metal design" for that G5, though it does appear as though the vast majority of early revelations and leaks with this handset have been appropriate.
LG’s Next Flagship Phone Will Stand Out With A Unique Accessory Slot
The G5 will really do the first of two flagship smartphones for LG in 2016, and its launch date was already scheduled for February 21st at Mobile World Congress within Barcelona. It will be vying for that spotlight with Samsung's anticipated Galaxy S7, which marks yet another strategic change for LG. The company's flagship Gary the gadget guy series has traditionally been introduced a couple of months after Samsung's latest Galaxy flagship, allowing for some breathing room between the two, but it seems like LG has now decided to go directly against its nemesis.
Whether this newfound valor proves propitious or not depends in large part about how LG uses the G5's enigmatic fresh accessory slot. At a period of time of growing nostalgia for old technology and boredom with smartphone spec battles, perhaps LG's new cartridges may very well be just what a phone company must stand out. We'll determine at MWC.
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